Automotive bull5hit facts thread

[Bear]

Similar to the JPS racing connection, in the 1980s a single-marque MG Montego and Maestro team existed sponsored by Pot Noodle. Alongside the Mini Red Hot and Jet Black, you could order an MG Maestro Chicken & Musroom in fetching green & white, or a brown & red MG Montego Beef & Tomato. The MG Metro Turbo had a last hurrah in the form of the Bombay Bad Boy, in black with orange skirts.

Soy sauce was optional.

[Bear]

One I remember being told - the Porsche 928 V8 was designed by Mitsubishi.

[castros_bro]

Daf developed their variomatic belts from the hard wearing and slightly elastic semi-synthetic Edam.

[fred]

Cars in the late 60's early 70's only rusted so quick due to acid rain caused by super unleaded fuel, once this was banned not one car has suffered rust once

[Christine]

Bsa Bantam cylinder heads have the same pcd as a  Mini  hub . Using slightly longer bolts ,they bolt straight on..

[Station]

Interesting British car manufacturer facts:

 

Longbridge was an undersea decepticon headquarters located off the California coastline.

 

Talbots Ryton plant had a space bridge used to transport energon cubes to Cybertron.

 

The F0rd factory in Dagenham once employed Starscream and Soundwave as 'canteen assistant' and 'fitter' respectively.

[brownnova]

The Aston Martin Lagonda was in fact designed on an Etch-a-Sketch, William Towns had bet he couldn't draw straight lines on an Etch-a-Sketch, he won the bet.

[Justin Case]

Another interesting British car manufacturer fact:

 

Longbridge was named after a large overhead structure built to transport completed Austin Healey body shells from the Jensen factory in West Bromwich, where they were manufactured, to their final assembly in South Birmingham without disrupting traffic on the M5.

[warren t claim]

Autoshite car lotteries are administered by an independent adjudicator from an organisation called CUMALOT.

[Station]

Before becoming an outsource factory, the Magna Steyr plant produced the Isuzu Piazza and Vauxhall Chevette rear axles and rear floor pans (where the axle bolts to the floor pan). The process was overseen by Jon 'Dugong' Burgess who was employed as an 'identicalness surveyor', checking both axles lined up with either floorpans (which were both identical). It was important that both lined up, otherwise Jon would be fired.

The Piazza was also built here, but as the Scirocco mk2.

[warren t claim]

Before becoming an outsource factory, the Magna Steyr plant produced the Isuzu Piazza and Vauxhall Chevette rear axles and rear floor pans (where the axle bolts to the floor pan). The process was overseen by Jon 'Dugong' Burgess who was employed as an 'identicalness surveyor', checking both axles lined up with either floorpans (which were both identical). It was important that both lined up, otherwise Jon would be fired.

The Piazza was also built here, but as the Scirocco mk2.

His obsession with grovelling around under every Chevette at club level stage rallies while muttering to himself has earned him the nickname 'the axle tramp'

[inconsistant]

Alloy wheel cleaner was invented, by accident, before alloy wheels existed.

[Bear]

Visitors to Sea World may notice something familiar about the glass-bottom aquaria. AMC sold unused Pacers to the designers, who used the upside-down bodies with minimal modification.

[vulgalour]

When new, all Humber Imperials tasted of mint.

[Taff]

The Zastava factory in Belgrade has two productions line in the main structural shop, one for cars and one for assault rifles.

[320touring]

Unbeknownst to the vast majority of the motoring enthusiast community, the design of all cars is are down to one man.

 

Using his time travelling 414i Sli he has ventured far and wide, building in stunning design features and awkward bits to weld in equal measure.

 

Few have his seen his face, for it is shadowed by a hat. Those that have speak his name in hushed and reverent tones.

 

They call him " The Arch Angyl Vulgalour"

[New POD]

Every council property in the Solihull/Birmingham Enclave of Chelmsley Wood, was built with a garage allocated to it, even the one bed OAP bungalows.

The reason for this was that the Government was using BLMC  (who in turn was using Land Rover) as a guinea pig, and was considering outsourcing the building of all sub assemblies, off site, by home workers, who would normally be on the dole.

 

A single garage could house a couple of assembly benches, and component parts storage, and the average OAP or Doley, could spend every afternoon, putting widgets together.

 

As a forerunner to the Lean "Milkround", an actually milkman, would also stop at the garages, and pick up the next day's parts and drop them at the Land rover Factory on Lode Lane. 

 

Because the electric milk float, would not be capable of travelling that far, the milk and parts deliveries were done in whatever new Range Rover was available on the day. Unfortunately some Range Rovers, came off the assembly line, and were tested down the farm lanes to pick up the milk, and then ragged up to "the wood". Usually only 2 or 3 bottles would break.

 

This is why some range rovers smell of stale milk.

 

Also UnFortunately for Land Rover, the assembly of components was organised by the Chlemsley Wood drug mafia, and they had strict quality control, and insistence on output. a Mr Magnetti Marelli knew the quality manager, as he was "family", alias Joseph Lucusetti, and a deal was done to ship all components from Sicily, but because of the distances involved Land Rover was forced to allow monthly shipments, and build a massive whorehouse warehouse. Once Lucas, as he was known to friends, was back in his home land, he let quality slip, and so Lucas and Marelli, and a bloke called Carello (or Lites - after his fire lighting ability) all came to have bad reputations for quality.

Eventually the garages were turned into Cannabis farms, and the drug mafia continued to drive Range Rovers. They then bought the farm that supplied the milk, but then they sold the land to BMW, for their engine plant.  As part of the deal they got a number of black X5's.  

Eventually the garages were used by residents, for storage of stolen part parts, and TV's

[FakeConcern]

Even though I've found this thread really funny & liked almost all the posts, I haven't clicked "like" for one of them. Maybe.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

It is well known that after saving the life of Charles De Gaulle in the infamous OAS attack in 1962 the Citroen DS was seen as the safest place for French Presidents to travel.

So much so ,that to entice them into using the CX , special bullet proof convex glass was fitted to every one produced and the lwb Prestige had an extra 2cm thickness of steel in the roof.

As a cost saving measure on the XM a second bullet proof rear window was fitted inside higher spec models only.

When the C6 came along it was considered unrepublican not to have protection to all trim levels so the convex bullet proof window was reintroduced.

[vulgalour]

Actually that's not quite true.  The convex rear screen on the CX isn't bulletproof at all, the shape of it is specifically designed to deflect bullets, something it does exceptionally well.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

That actually makes perfect sense and that would also explain the CX Athena the glass works like Wonder Woman's amulets and she was of course Athena's daughter.

[sheffcortinacentre]

working in the car game is easy & makes you huge profits, just watch the documentary " wheeler dealers"

[fred]

The two stoke engine was actually thought of after having a swift tommy tank in the toilets

[Taff]

Carburettor is a French word with no literal translation, however the Oxtail English Dictionary acknowledges the colloquial translation as “Satan’s measuring vesselâ€Â

[brownnova]

Many wrongly assume that operation stack is so called because it involves stacking lorries.

 

However, it was invented by Barnet goalkeeper Graham Stack, who saw the French lining up Renaults before allowing them on the ferry to check them for electrical faults, and thought if there's ever a problem with the Chunnel that's what we should do!

[castros_bro]

Before the Eastern European countries joined the EU everyone in the United Britain drove dirty cars.

[Split_Pin]

Genuine piece of platinum-grade twaddle imparted in my actual direction at a recent car show about Vauxhall C20XE 'Redtop' engines:

 

"If they tap loudly then it's a good one".

[Split_Pin]

Every British Vehicle released from 1965 to 1970 was designed by various, innovative creators but whose work was commandeered by Roy Axe at the 11th hour, on special assignment from manufacturers of a very specific radiator grille and lucas lamp assembly.

Every British vehicle released after 1970 but prior to 1975 was designed by David Bache.

Every British vehicle released after 1975 was designed by Harris Mann.

[vulgalour]

Originally, the Roladex was supposed to be an early sat nav style system installed in the dashboard of Buick Roadmasters.

[twosmoke300]

A chatty tappet is a happy tappet